Active

Contract Opportunity

SYNOPSIS: This Sources Sought Announcement is to assist the US Army DEVCOM Soldier Center to identify potential sources to provide garment manufacturing capabilities of stitch-less seaming and sealing for Chemical Biological garment.

The Government requests that responses be submitted electronically to mary.k.prebensen.civ@army.mil, patricia.a.bigrig.civ@army.mil and kristen.y.wong.civ@army.mil by 5 APRIL 2024 by 5pm EST.

Background: The Government (DEVCOM Soldier Center) needs manufacturing capabilities of a novel Chemical Biological (CB) Class 1 or Class 3 such as but limited to garment, sealed socks, gloves, hoods, or load carriage pouches that meets assembly requirements described below. This is not a Request for Quotation (RFQ), Request for Proposal (RFP) or an Invitation for Bid (IFB). It is a market research tool being used to determine the availability and adequacy of potential production for planning purposes only. Response to this notice is not considered as offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. The Government does not intend to award a contract based on responses, pay for the preparation of any information presented or the use of any such information.

Description: The US Army DEVCOM Soldier Center, Chemical Biological Innovative Material & Ensemble Development Team will be developing a CB garment with the intention of improving protection and maneuverability of Soldier performance during their mission. The Government is conducting a market survey to identify manufacturing capabilities in durable, flexible, and sealed seams to meet strict requirements necessary to ensure the performance of the garment or other gear.

Polyfluorinated or Perfluorinated Alkyl Substances (PFAS) availability are a growing concern due to the environmental impacts, and supply chain impacts due to impending regulations and litigations in this industry. Therefore, it is interested in technological improvements that avoid or have fully known PFAS components in order for the government to understand the risks involved with certain processes.

Considerations are as follows:

Specifications: This RFI is to determine the current capabilities of manufacturing stitch-less and sealed seams in novel Level-A CB garment ensemble in the industry that meets the following priorities:

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  Must have a variety of industrial machines to be able to fabricate different stitch-less and sealed seams.

  
  
  
  
  
  • List of machines with brands, model number, and how often they are used (i.e. seam sealing, ultra sonic welding, heat press, etc.).
    
    
    
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      How many operators and how often they are trained.

      
      
    
    
    
    
  
  
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    Describe machine maintenance (include how often each machine is serviced, in-house mechanics, and/or service contracts for rapid repairs).

    
    
  
  
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    Ability to import Gerber patterns (or work with 3rd party to appropriately convert patterns) and use CAD software/hardware.

    
    
  
  
  
  


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  Stitch-less and seaming manufacturing process that is suitable for CB type garments and should be able to accommodate novel materials and components.

  
  
  
  
  
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    Must be able to work with composite materials in differing weights.

    
    
  
  
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    Must be able to work with materials with differing melting points.

    
    
  
  
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    Must be able to work with hard components (i.e. butyl rubber, polyurethane) that are different geometries and curvatures.

    
    
  
  
  
  


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  Must have quality seam inspection plan during and at end of production.

  
  
  
  
  
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    Must have methods of testing seams during and at end of production.

    
    
  
  
  
  


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  Must have experience with seam sealing end items with trained operators to operate machinery.

  
  
  
  
  
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    Seam sealing over different types of seams.

    
    
  
  
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    List experiences and equipment used to create non-PFAS seam sealing seams.

    
    
  
  
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    List past experiences and efforts that required seam sealing.

    
    
    
    
    
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      Give examples of products (commercial and/or military products).

      
      
    
    
    
    
  
  
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    May provide a seam sealed swatch to demonstrate capabilities along with test reports and material data.

    
    
    
    
    
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      Seam sealing over different seams.

      
      
    
    
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      Seam sealing on a curved seam.

      
      
    
    
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      Seam sealing with a combination of protective materials.

      
      
    
    
    
    
  
  
  
  


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  Must have experience with stitch-less seaming end items with trained operators to operate machinery.

  
  
  
  
  
  • 
    

    Stitch-less seaming over different types of seams.

    
    
  
  
  • 
    

    List experience and equipment used to create non-PFAS stitch-less seams.

    
    
  
  
  • 
    

    List past experiences and efforts that required stitch-less seaming.

    
    
    
    
    
    • 
      

      Give examples of products (commercial and/or military products).

      
      
    
    
    
    
  
  
  • 
    

    May provide a stitch-less seaming swatch to demonstrate capabilities along with test reports and material data.

    
    
    
    
    
    • 
      

      Stitch-less seaming over different seams.

      
      
    
    
    • 
      

      Stitch-less seaming on a curved seam.

      
      
    
    
    • 
      

      Stitch-less seaming with a combination of protective materials.

      
      
    
    
    
    
  
  
  
  


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  Responsiveness with the capability to communicate virtually on a routine basis during timeframe of production and in some cases, ad hoc by email, phone, Microsoft TEAMS.

  
  


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  Company outline of available capabilities (cutting, sewing, packaging), square footage, employee count, describe organizational structure for non-production areas, QA/QC process, management skills on the production floor.

  
  


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  List out past work related to a CB protective garment, other protective garments, and/or work for the Government that has a range of graded sizes and altered lengths. Please list products with descriptions of the design and types of fabric, seams, stitch type you have experienced in manufacturing these items. Include number of personnel and roles

  
  

Deliverables: Respondents who believe they have capabilities that meet the above requirements are requested to submit a short (no more than 10 pages total) summary to the above specification list, including Company name and address, Web page URL, point of contact with phone number and e-mail address, DUNS number, Cage Code, and a statement regarding any designation (if applicable), by the date and to the email addresses specified below. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code is 314999 and the small business size is 500 employees. Respondents should include a description of company's background, experience, and any other information that demonstrates value, performance, and capabilities. Respondents MUST include a statement as to whether the company is domestically or foreign owned. If foreign owned, please indicate country.

If submitting seam seal swatch samples, please provide in a form of a 12 inch X 12 inch swatch. These samples will be used in an assessment of the respondent’s capabilities to meet the requirement described above. Please also include in you submission all material characteristics to include test report(s) and material data, if applicable. Test reports and material data shall not count against the 10 page limit.

Delivery Date: Interested parties shall submit requested written information, test reports/material data and/or samples to mary.k.prebensen.civ@army.mil, kristen.y.wong.civ@army.mil and patricia.a.bigrig.civ@army.mil. Samples must be sent to the following address by 5pm Eastern Time, 5 APRIL 2024:

US Army DEVCOM Soldier Center

ATTN: Kristen Wong

10 General Greene Avenue

Building 4, D 311

Natick, MA 01760

United States

Contractor shall not include GFM/GFP in their Request for Information.

Interested parties are invited to submit a response to this Sources Sought Announcement. THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT ANNOUNCEMENT ONLY

This Sources Sought Announcement is issued solely for information and planning purposes and to identify interested sources. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION. No contract will be awarded from this announcement. This Sources Sought does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP in the future. It is subject to change and is not binding on the Government. Further, unsolicited proposals will not be accepted. Funding is not available at this time. The United States Army has not made a commitment to procure any of the items/services discussed, and release of this Sources Sought Announcement should not be construed as such a commitment or as authorization to incur cost for which reimbursement would be required or sought. Response to this Sources Sought Announcement is voluntary and no reimbursement will be made for any costs associated with providing information in response to this and any follow-on information requests. All submissions become Government property and will not be returned.

Not responding to this Sources Sought Announcement does not preclude participation in any future RFP if any is issued. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized in the SAM.gov website. It is the responsibility of the potential responders to monitor this site for additional information pertaining to this subject.

RESPONSES:

Interested parties may identify their interest and capability by sending responses regarding this requirement to DEVCOM Soldier Center via e-mail ONLY to mary.k.prebensen.civ@army.mil, kristen.y.wong.civ@army.mil and patricia.a.bigrig.civ@army.mil. Responses must be sent to the following address by 5pm Eastern Time, 5 APRIL 2024. The U.S. Government will not pay for any information or administrative cost incurred in response to this Notice. All costs associated with responding to this Notice will be solely at the expense of the interested party.

Please provide business size (indicate your socioeconomic status), applicable NAICS code, and CAGE code. If you hold a GSA Federal Supply Schedule contract, please identify your contract number.

QUESTIONS:

Any questions for clarification may be emailed to mary.k.prebensen.civ@army.mil, kristen.y.wong.civ@army.mil and patricia.a.bigrig.civ@army.mil. Questions must be sent to the following address by 5pm Eastern Time, 29 MARCH 2024. Verbal questions will NOT be accepted. Questions shall NOT contain proprietary or classified information. An unattributed list of questions and answers will be published at the same web location of this Sources Sought Announcement.

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